I have pointed out earlier the proposal of the government to disinvest further shares of ONGC, either direct or through buy-back route. Yesterday the bids for ONGC shares was done and it is reported that 42.77 crores shares were sold getting about Rs.12,000 crore.

Interestingly. it was also reported that the ONGC top management was completely kept out of the bid processing with neither the Chairman nor the Company Secretary present in the decision-making meeting.  Were they omitted, since there were some objections from them? We will know in the coming days about what happened behind the curtains.

CITU in a press statement has lambasted the Central govt. on its policy of disinvestment:

“On the very day of unprecedented strike on 28th February all over the country by all Central Trade Unions on ten point Charter of demands which included immediate stoppage of disinvestment of profit making PSUs, the government responded by declaring 5% disinvestment of ONGC, the Maharatna PSU having an annual profit of Rs. 18 thousand crore as well as reserve and surplus of more Rs 1 lakh crore. CITU condemns the hypocritic stand of the government which only couple of days back appealed to Central Trade Unions through Labour Minister to desist from going on strike as the “issues raised by the Central Trade Unions have already been addressed to a substantial extent.” CITU reminds the government that even during pre-budget discussion, Central Trade Unions had asked the government to take concrete steps of recover at least part of Rs. 3 lakh crore tax arrears of individuals / corporates, to make up the revenue deficit instead of selling public assets through disinvestment. Even 5% recovery of the tax arrears will exceed the amount proposed to be gained through disinvestment of ONGC.
CITU also deplores government’s plan to increase petrol, diesel and LPG price after assembly elections in five states which is bound to fuel further price-rise and inflation, a burning issue highlighted by the all India strike. CITU strongly asserts that if the government can afford to arrest the price-rise of petroleum products for electoral purpose during election times there is no reason why the same cannot be done during non-election

CITU calls upon the working class to mobilize and vociferously protest against governments’ hypocritic stand to ignore the demands of the working class to stop inflation and disinvestment”

The government is always on the look out for getting funds out of PSUs, in addition trying the PSUs to become loss making. Air India is one special example for the above. BSNL, which had more than Rs. 35,000 crore cash balance has been made a loss making company within 5 to 6 years. This policy is being implemented in other PSUs also.

There are more than two dozen companies which together have a cash surplus of more than Rs. 1,80,000 crore like ONGC, HPCL, BPCL, CIL etc. In addition to disinvestment, the government is trying to get the cash surplus to be reduced and get it for the government. One proposal is to direct the PSUs to buy back the shares. The government is trying other strategies also.

Government is seriously considering all options. The trade unions should be alert and vigilant to foil such anti-PSU plans.

More than 10 crore workers went on strike nation-wide on 10 major demands including against privatisation/disinvestment of  PSUs. Even before the strike was over, the government, on the same day, announced that 5% shares of the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) will be disinvested with a target of Rs. 12,400 crore from the sale. The present stake of the government in ONGC is 74.14 %, which will come down to 69.14 % after the sale.

The Government fixed a target of Rs. 40,000 crore from the sale of shares this financial year 2011-12, but only Rs. 22,144 crore could be achieved. Hence the urgency and madness to sell the shares of ONGC.

The Central Trade Unions have to react sharply at this offensive.

The following PSU Banks have called for applications for recruitment of staff. The total number comes to 10,255. The other PSU Banks are also expected to recruit shortly. In such a case, it is estimated that there will be recruitment to the extent of about 20,000 to 25,000. Those who are graduates and who have already passed the written examination conducted by the Institute of Banking Personnel Selection are eligible to apply. The vacancies have come mainly due to the VRS and retirement as also increase in work.

Name of Bank                   No. Of vacancies

Union Bank                         2473

Bank of India                     1800

Syndicate bank                 1750

Corporation Bank              355

Punjab National Bank      775

Allahabad bank                                1600

Bank of Baroda                   600

Indian Bank                          452

United Bank of India        450

The recruitment process has started in the Public Sector Banks. 9 Public Sector Banks have called for applications. The vacancy comes to 10,255. Other PSU Banks are also expected to call for applications. The vacancies have arisen due to increase in the business, large-scale VRS earlier and very less recruitment for the last many years.

The recruitment will help the customers and also reduce the heavy overload of work on the employees. Not only in the banks, but in other Public Sector Units also the recruitment for regular employees should take place by regularising the contract workers as also bringing in fresh blood.

Air India is in financial difficulties, as every body knows. In this blog, I have posted earlier how the Government, Minister and bureaucrats were using the air-line for their own agenda without any legal or financial binding. More skeletons are coming from the cup-board after Praful Patel has been shifted from the Civil Aviation Minister’s post.

The latest is the scam of arranging a bigger air-craft to accommodate his family members in the executive class. The Air-India management was compelled to disclose on an RTI that on April 25th 2010 from Bangalore to Male and on April 28th from Male to Bangalore A 319 Aircrafts were  changed for  the bigger A 320 Aircrafts to have more executive class seats to accommodate the family of the Minister. This resulted in vacant seats both in executive and economy class, causing big loss to the Air-India.

The Minister was using the Air-India as his family property without considering the profit or loss to the company. This is not an isolated instance. There may be many other cases like this. The concerned persons should be taken to tasks.

It seems that following the financial difficulty of Air-India and delay in payment of salary to staff, the private companies are taking advantage of the same and delaying salary to their employees also. The salary of December is yet to be paid to King Fisher staff. For the Jet employees, the salary for January has not paid so far. Both are pleading of lack of funds. To what extent it is true. The companies had got a lot of profit earlier and expanded their services with the full hearted support of the staff. Now, even if we agree that there was some financial difficulty, how the salary can de denied/delayed when the management is fully responsible for the same.

My full support is to the staff of both these companies who are suffering due to the unethical decisions  of the private companies.

Air India may get Rs. 21,000 crore bail-out. At last, the GoM (Group of Ministers) have cleared for Rs. 21,000 debt restructuring plan for the ailing Air India. This restructuring plan also includes purchasing of new planes. The plan will come in to force only after approval by the Cabinet. It is interesting to note that the Prime Minister and Finance Minister who immediately reacted to the down-fall of King Fisher Airlines and called out for its bail-out took so much time in the case of Air-India, the government-owned company. Any way better late than never.

The  Central Government has been pressurising the Public Sector units which have surplus cash with them to invest the same. The Prime Minister announced in the meeting of the CPSEs on 31st January 2012 that 17 large Publc Sector Units have committed to invest Rs. 1,40,000 crores in the coming year. This is also one method of getting the surplus cash of PSUs in the market, as part of the neo-liberal policies of the government.